Family Matters in the Wild West

This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.

The New York Sun
NY Sun
NEW YORK SUN CONTRIBUTOR

“The Mask of Zorro” was a worthy addition to the post-“Raiders of the Lost Ark” genre of pseudo-serials, which also includes movies like “The Mummy” and last year’s underrated “Sahara.” “The Legend of Zorro” doesn’t live up to its predecessor, but it does deliver, on a significantly reduced budget, the memory of what made it such a pleasing Hollywood bauble: grandiose Southwestern landscapes, evil villains, preposterous derring-do, and seductively cheesy star power. After all, it was the original “Zorro” that gave the world the gorgeous, cheeky Welsh starlet Catherine Zeta-Jones.

That was seven years ago, when Antonio Banderas and his co-star were in the prime of the leading-man and -lady territory. Now they’re getting a bit long in the tooth, so it’s not altogether surprising that the filmmakers have reimagined the sequel for a younger demographic, as a child’s-eye view of the romance between his parents. Fortunately, the two leads remain movie stars through and through.

As “The Legend of Zorro” opens, California is on the cusp of joining the Union, and the young state-to-be seems a happy, rustic paradise of democracy-hungry Mexicans recently freed from the tyranny of Spain.In a ridiculous fight sequence, Zorro takes on a band of marauding desperados who, Iraqi insurgent-style, are intent on disrupting the vote. We soon discover that 10 years have passed, and that the vigilante lifestyle is taking its toll on Zorro’s family.

Played gamely by Mr. Banderas, Zorro is a yuppie father who works too much and doesn’t spend time with his precocious son and his wife, the willful and radiant Ms. Zeta-Jones. The lovebirds become estranged, torn asunder by nefarious gringos, and thrown into an evil French knight’s plot to, you know, destroy the world, or at the very least, the United States.

As in the first film, there is swordplay aplenty, though it’s less realistic. Parents should know that in Zorro’s world, multiple people can run, flip, and thrust sharp objects and no one bleeds, much less puts their eye out. Like tumblers sliding into place, each parry, thrust, and heroic leap unlocks a plotpoint that doesn’t surprise so much as maintain momentum. (Which is appreciated, as the movie constantly flirts with wearing out its welcome at over two hours.)

The lack of CGI animation is a relief as well. Stunt men are national treasures, and I love seeing them crash through roofs and run around on fire. The relentless climax made me happy to see an actual locomotive.

Much of the original creative team, including director Martin Campbell, returns for this overdue outing. (Disappointingly, Anthony Hopkins does not reprise his borderline-minstrel role as a heavily tanned Englishman impersonating a Hispanic Obi-Wan Kenobi). The bad guy, Rufus Sewell, has little to do but seethe and sputter. It’s his henchman – a cruel gunslinger with wooden teeth and a cross-shaped scar on his face, played with wicked abandon by Nick Chinlund – who steals the show.

But the real story here is the redemption of a father who is too committed to his work, and this should ring true to any parent who feels they neglect their family in order to eke out a living. Zorro’s son, Joaquin (Adrian Alonso), is appropriately adorable, and undoubtedly a proxy for this movie’s intended audience. Resentful of his father’s namby-pamby ways and oblivious that his hero, Zorro, is actually his padre, Joaquin jumps into the mix – the desire to right wrongs apparently a genetic disposition).The moral of the story? It’s okay to spend time at the office, so long as you’re a swashbuckling action hero. Sorry, bankers.

Another indication that this is really a kid’s movie is Zorro’s trusty horse, Tornado, who shows up as strict comic relief, complete with eyes that widen with fear at the prospect of approaching peril.

Fortunately, the laughs don’t stop at the funny animal, and the moviemakers imbue the film with a romantic-comedy lightness that takes the edge off the action. One of the best things “The Legend of Zorro” does is switch seamlessly from comedy, to romance, to action. There’s a little something for everyone, providing “everyone” means a family of four looking to escape the house on a lazy Saturday afternoon.

NY Sun
NEW YORK SUN CONTRIBUTOR

This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.


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